Flash Gordon rockets to big screen

Alex Raymond's classic space hero Flash Gordon is
returning to the big screen, with a movie in the early stages of
development at Fox.

Producer John Davis is pushing the project ahead, having
acquired rights from Hearst Corporation, which owns King Features
Syndicate, the publisher of classic Flash Gordon material.
George Nolfi, who wrote The Bourne Ultimatum, has provided
a treatment, with J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay -- writers of the
upcoming third Star Trek movie -- set to deliver the final
script.

Created by Raymond in 1934 as a newspaper strip, the series
followed Flash, his daring love interest Dale Arden, and unhinged
scientist Hans Zarkov as they fought off the advances of alien
conqueror Ming the Merciless, both on Earth and on the distant
planet Mongo. It was bold, colourful, mind-expanding fare for the
time, full of flying warriors and peculiar creatures. The fanciful
universe seeded pop culture with ideas and archetypes that have
inspired science fiction as a whole in the decades since. The
original comics were soon adapted into radio dramas, film serials,
animated series and, most memorably, a 1980 movie starring Sam
Jones, Melody Anderson, and Brian Blessed, with a soundtrack by
Queen.

The effort by Fox to bring the characters back to the screen
isn't unprecedented. As recently as 2010, director Breck Eisner
(The Crazies) was looking to develop the property for a
reboot, with a planned 'Flash Gordon 3D'. With the rights then
laying with Sony, Eisner had planned a movie "very
much looking back to the original Alex Raymond strips." However,
nothing appeared before rights expired, shelving what might have
been. A mediocre live-action TV series did
make it to the airwaves in 2007, but only lasted one season.

Which brings to mind a pressing question: are audiences still
likely to care about Flash Gordon? The 1980 film flopped,
only becoming a cult hit after release, and even the current run of comic books has seen several mini-relaunches to
try to garner more interest. The character and world also demands a
big budget approach, and with so many troubled productions in its
past, Fox may prove reluctant to fully embrace its potential. It's
very early days for the new movie plans, but fans of the classic
hero will no doubt be hoping that this time, Flash gets the star
treatment.